The Basic Principles of FDG-PET/CT Imaging.

Positron emission tomography (PET) imaging with 2-[(18)F]fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose (FDG) forms the basis of molecular imaging. FDG-PET imaging is a multidisciplinary undertaking that requires close interdisciplinary collaboration in a broad team comprising physicians, technologists, secretaries, radio-chemists, hospital physicists, molecular biologists, engineers, and cyclotron technicians. The aim of this review is to provide a brief overview of important basic issues and considerations pivotal to successful patient examinations, including basic physics, instrumentation, radiochemistry, molecular and cell biology, patient preparation, normal distribution of tracer, and potential interpretive pitfalls.